NEWS FROM BERLIN

Berlin: repeating Bundestag elections?

Berlin is preparing itself for a complete repeat of the last federal election. As state officer Stephan Bröchler said in a video published last Monday, the theme is being discussed within the districts. Last week, there was a hearing of the Federal Constitutional Court where the case for repeating the election is being heard, attended by Bröchler. He said that there were no indications as to when a judgment would be announced and in which direction this could go. The only thing that is certain is that the election must take place within 60 days of the verdict. That is 30 days fewer than when the elections to the Berlin House of Representatives were repeated almost six months ago. Source: rbb

Hundreds of retail and wholesale workers demand better wages

Several hundred employees from Berlin and Brandenburg in the wholesale and retail trades have demanded better wages at a warning strike rally in Berlin. The ver.di union called for an all-day warning strike in both sectors. “Despite the holiday season, participation is high,” said ver.di negotiator Conny Weißbach last Friday. Branches and warehouses of Kaufland, Rewe, Edeka, Ikea, HM and Karstadt Galeria Kaufhof were affected by the warning strike. The workers demanded 2.50 euros more per hour and a minimum wage of 13.50 euros per hour in retail for around 230,000 employees in both federal states. Source: rbb

Ella’s grave desecrated again

In 2021, the Iranian trans woman Ella set herself on fire on Berlin’s Alexanderplatz. Since then, her grave has repeatedly been desecrated. The Berlin state security team were called out due to another incident last Sunday: the grave was wrapped with fire brigade barrier tape and a warning symbol. The items were removed and secured as evidence. Ella’s grave in the central cemetery in Berlin-Friedrichsfelde has been the target for several transphobic hate crimes. On April 26, the police reported that several items had been placed there as vandalism. Source: welt

Wegner and Redmann distance themselves from Merz’s statements on the AfD

CDU party leader Friedrich Merz has met fierce criticism from within his own party over his statements about a possible joint action with the AfD. Berlin’s Governing Mayor Kai Wegner wrote on Twitter: “The AfD only knows division. Where should there be COOPERATION?” Brandenburg’s CDU leader Jan Redmann also contradicted Merz, and the Berlin state chairman of the Junge Union Harald Burkart also made a statement rejecting any cooperation between the CDU and the AfD. After this backlash, CDU leader Friedrich Merz rowed back. “There will be no cooperation between the CDU and the AfD at the local level,” Merz tweeted. Source: rbb

NEWS FROM GERMANY

Germany plans 20 billion euros in subsidies for the microchip industry

The federal government is planning to distribute subsidies in a total of 20 billion euros to the semiconductor industry. This is intended to support the local technology sector and ensure the supply of critical components, the Bloomberg news agency reported. The subsidies are to be distributed to German and to international companies by 2027, and the money will come from the climate and transformation funds. The German federal government is currently discussing bundling up to 180 billion euros in the fund. According to the report, the details should be published in the coming week. Source: junge welt

Number of first-time asylum applications in Germany increases in 2023

According to a new report by the Federal Office for Migration, the number of asylum applications in Germany will increase sharply in 2023. Compared to the first half of 2022, there were 77.5 percent more initial applications. From January to June, 162,271 applications were made. Of these, 150,166 are initial applications. In the first half of 2022, there were 84,583. There has been the expected reaction to the report from the right focusing on and emphasising the numbers of migrants coming from racialised countires and other demographics. Police boss Heiko Teggatz described the situation as highly dramatic. Source: focus

Die Linke: a plan against a right-wing country

Martin Schirdewan, co-chairman of the Party die Linke, and Gregor Gysi, left-wing member of the Bundestag, call their new initiative a “plan for a fair country”. Higher taxes for millionaires and large companies “which had earned themselves a lot during the crisis” are intended to provide finance relief for low-income earners. This can be understood as the standard redistribution from top to bottom. The demands are not surprising but send a signal to all those who are now looking to the right because they feel left alone by the traffic light coalition governments’s failed crisis policy. Source: nd-aktuell

NEWS FROM BERLIN

Berlin Senate decides for mandatory ID in swimming pools

Large scale fights at the city’s outdoor pools are nothing new, but the problem has reached a new level with the swimming pool at Columbiabad remaining closed until further notice after many employees called in sick – apparently in protest at the level of violence they were facing at work. Last Thursday, at a visit to the outdoor pool at Prinzenbad in Kreuzberg, Berlin mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) announced plans to introduce mandatory ID checks for all guests. In the future, visitors will need to book personalised tickets and identify themselves as they enter. Video surveillance will also be introduced. Source: exberliner

Tesla wants to build the largest car factory in Germany

The American electric car manufacturer Tesla wants to produce one million vehicles per year at its plant in Grünheide in the future. Instead of the previous 5,000 cars per week, 20,000 would roll off from the assembly line. Tesla would thus have the largest plant for car production in Germany. The group also wants to inform citizens about its plans. From Wednesday (July 19) on, citizens can take part in the approval process and raise their concerns. The application documents will be online until August 18 at the webpage uvp-verbund.de. Source: rbb24

NEWS FROM GERMANY

Women make allegations against Rammstein keyboarder

The band Rammstein has been publicly criticized for weeks due to allegations sexual assault by singer Till Lindemann, which Lindemann denies. According to a media report, there are now new allegations:  two women accuse Rammstein keyboardist Christian Lorenz, known as “Flake,” of sexual assault. In one case, the woman is said to have been a minor. The incidents are said to have happened more than 20 years ago. According to NDR and “Süddeutsche Zeitung,” “Flake” rejects the allegations. Last weekend, Rammstein performed two concerts in Berlin. Around 300 people demanded a ban on the events in front of the Olympic Stadium on Saturday. Source: rbb24

Teachers who made right-wing incidents public leave the school in Burg

In April, two teachers in Burg, in the Spree-Neiße district, made right-wing extremist and racist incidents at their school public, triggering a nationwide debate. “We are addressing the public because we are confronted with right-wing extremism, sexism and homophobia in our everyday work as school staff and no longer want to keep our mouths shut.” According to the police,around 30 stickers with photos of the teachers and urging them to go to Berlin have been posted. The two teachers will leave the school. And, still in this year, both are to receive the “Prize for civil courage against anti-Semitism, right-wing radicalism and racism.” Source: rbb24

Majority for candy advertising ban

According to a survey, carried out by the organization Foodwatch, most Germans support the plans of Minister Cem Özdemir (Greens) to restrict advertising for sweets aimed at children. Two-thirds of those surveyed are in favor of extensive restrictions on advertising for foods with high sugar, fat, or salt content in schools, kindergartens, as well as on television and on the Internet. Özdemir has already had his original plans watered down due to pressure from the liberals. Now the FDP must finally give up its blockade. The minister appealed to the traffic-light-alliance to discuss the law in the Bundestag as soon as possible. Source: tagesschau

Called for solidarity with Last Generation activists

The protest actions of the group “Last Generation”, carried out last week, called for a necessary U-turn in climate protection with partial blockades of roads, among other issues. They also have increasingly involved physical confrontations and attacks with vehicles against protesters. The group, often discredited as “climate gluers” in the tabloid and conservative media, now receives support from an alliance of civil society groups. “Activists are currently being criminalized in Germany and presented as a threat to public order. They are denied their basic rights to freedom of expression and assembly,” says the appeal, which can currently be found on the online platform Campact. Source: nd-aktuell

Germany is far ahead in Europe when it comes to home office

According to a study published by the Munich Ifo Institute, German employees can work from home to a particularly large extent compared to other European countries. Germany comes in second place among 17 European countries with an average of one day of home office per week. Among the countries ahead of Germany are the United Kingdom (1.5 days), Canada (1.7 days), and the USA (1.4 days). The survey also suggests there might be a further increase in working from home: according to their employees, employers in most countries are planning more home office than is currently being implemented. Source: dw

NEWS FROM BERLIN

Mohrenstrasse to be renamed: a defeat for old white men

Seven ‘culture campaigners’ face defeat at Berlin’s Administrative Court on Thursday once the court rejected their objections to the renaming of Mohrenstraße to Anton-W.-Amo-Straße. Since 2020, anti-colonialist activists have been fighting to find a new name for the street. Among the older men who went to court to save a racist street name was the well-known historian Götz Aly. Regina Römhild, professor at the Institute for European Ethnology (Humboldt University), located on “M Street”, mentions there have been many negative reactions. “I work closely with people from South Africa, and they are surprised. It’s damaging for Berlin as an international metropolis.” Source: nd-aktuell

NEWS FROM GERMANY

German inflation rate rises again

After three months of steady easing, inflation rate in Germany is on the rise again. According to Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), monthly figures have revealed inflation rates have been at 6.4 percent in June, up from 6.1 percent in May. The main explanations given for these rises is that the baseline for inflation was measured in June 2022 when the 9-euro ticket went on sale as well as the fuel discount and the energy relief package offered by the government last year. However, food prices remain the biggest driver of inflation in the country. Source: iamexpat

No objections to AfD district administrator

After a review of his “loyalty to the constitution”, the AfD politician Robert Stuhlmann can remain district administrator in the southern Thuringian district of Sonneberg. In the case of Stuhlmann, “no concrete circumstances are currently seen that are of sufficient weight and objectively suitable to trigger serious concern about his future fulfilment of the duty of loyalty to the constitution,” said the Thuringian state administration office last Monday in Weimar. The review had been started ex officio. The AfD have called the test a scandal and an attack on democracy. Source: jungewelt

Agreement on hospital reform

Last Monday, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) presented the hospital reform with agreement with almost all federal states. This was preceded by a tough and months-long struggle among the federal and state governments over content and competencies. Lauterbach promised a revolution in the industry, especially in terms of quality. The States and the federal government agreed on subjects such as funding, to be linked to quality criteria – which seems to have been agreed upon. The reform is set to come into force in January 2024, and the new financing system is not expected to take effect until 2025 at the earliest, because of amendment of state laws. Source: taz

Summer 2022: more than 60,000 heat deaths in Europe

In the hottest summer on the continent since records began, almost 8,200 people died in Germany alone because of the high temperatures. Scientists have been calling for prevention plans. The study, carried out by the French state health research institute Inserm and the Spanish institute ISGlobal, have stated, if there are no appropriate protective measures, there will be an average of 68,000 heat deaths every year from 2030 onwards. By 2040, the number of victims could rise to more than 94,000. The study also highlights that already in 2003 there were a high number of heat-related deaths. Source: dw

Germany is supplying arms to Ukraine worth 700 million euro

Germany is supporting Ukraine’s defence against the Russian invasion with additional weapons, ammunition, and military equipment worth almost 700 million euro. There are also 20,000 rounds of artillery ammunition and 5,000 rounds of smoke ammunition, as well as reconnaissance drones and anti-drone defences. In addition, Ukraine will receive a pioneer package with mine countermeasures and a medical package – including components for a field hospital. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) landed in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius this Tuesday together with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) and will officially announce the package at the start of the NATO summit. Source: pnp

Klingbeil on marital splitting: austerity proposal at an inopportune time

In and of itself, the abolition of ‘marital splitting’, that is, the promotion of the traditional division of roles in partnerships via tax law, would be progress. Feminists and leftists have been calling for it for decades. However, the timing of the abolition of the tax advantages for single-earner marriages proposed by SPD leader Lars Klingbeil, that is, during a serve cost of living crisis, has drawn criticism. Worse, Klingbei wants to prevent the abolition of parental allowance for very high-earning couples. Without a basic child allowance worthy of such a name, families with low incomes would suffer the worst consequences from the abolition of the marital splitting system. Source: nd-aktuell

NEWS FROM BERLIN

Thousands of cyclists demonstrate against Berlin bike path freeze

Last Sunday, thousands of Berliners went to the streets to protest one of the new coalition’s most debated decisions: the plan to freeze all planned new bike lanes, and to even close some of the already finished ones. Police estimated 8,000 people turned out, while organisers mention 13,000. Either way, it was obvious many were angry with the decision from Berlin’s new Transport Senator Manja Schreiner (CDU). The demonstration, in order to stress how important safe cycling is, went through two “ghost bikes” as well as memorials erected for cyclists killed in traffic accidents. Source: exberliner

“Rave the Planet” threatens to be cancelled

The techno parade “Rave the Planet” is supposed to take place next Saturday. This year’s motto is “Music is the Answer.” The organisers had registered 300,000 participants with the police in advance; last year around 200,000 people took part in the Berlin parade’s first edition. However, whether it can really take place is unclear. According to the organisers, they have not been able to find an ambulance service. The Malteser have dropped out at short notice. That organization, on the other hand, retorts that there had never been a binding agreement. Organisers of the parade ask emergency services to collaborate and find quick solutions. Source: rbb24

NEWS FROM GERMANY

Study in East Germany: Longing for “Authoritarian State”

Skepticism about the functioning of democracy remains particularly pronounced in eastern Germany. This is the conclusion of a representative study by the Else-Frenkel-Brunswik Institute of the University of Leipzig on “Authoritarian Dynamics and Dissatisfaction with Democracy”. According to the study, not even half of the respondents were satisfied with the state of the political system. Two-thirds even considered it pointless to get involved politically. Moreover, two-thirds of those surveyed shared a longing for the GDR. Around a quarter counted themselves among the losers of the transition. “In retrospect, satisfaction among respondents with their life in the GDR is high,” said co-study leader Oliver Decker. Source: tagesschau

University of Potsdam used as backdrop for right-wing extremists

A German flag hangs from the staircase of the Neues Palais in Potsdam. The photo on the Instagram channel of Anna Leisten, the Brandenburg state chairperson of the far-right youth organisation Junge Alternative (JA), is tagged with the hashtags #pridemonth and #prideinsteadpride – “a clear and disgusting mockery of Pride Month”, according to a statement by the General Students’ Committee (AStA) of the University of Potsdam. The AStA is considering pressing charges against Leisten. Last February, some queer students in the Potsdam district of Golm were verbally and physically attacked by a group of right-wingers. According to the AStA, students who were spreading right-wing slogans were identified. Source: nd-aktuell

First AfD mayor in Germany

The right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) has an elected full-time mayor for the first time. Farmer Hannes Loth won the run-off election in Raguhn-Jeßnitz in Saxony-Anhalt. Loth had already been ahead in the first round of voting in mid-June. At that time, however, none of the four candidates was able to achieve an absolute majority. The previous mayor of Raguhn-Jeßnitz, Bernd Marbach (no party affiliation), had given up his office prematurely in the spring for health reasons. For the AfD, the filling of the mayor’s office is, after the office of the district administrator in the district of Sonneberg, another prominent post in public administration. Source: dw

“1.5 million immigrants a year”

Economic expert Monika Schnitzer has proposed more immigration as a measure against the increasing shortage of skilled labour. “Germany needs 1.5 million immigrants a year if we are to have 400,000 new citizens every year, and thus maintain the labour force,” the economist told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. The skilled labour immigration law passed by the Bundestag is a step in the right direction. However, more is needed: “We should not demand that foreign skilled workers know German for every job.” Also, to address the shortage of skilled workers, Germany must invest more in children too. “It is an indictment that one in four fourth graders cannot read properly,” she criticised. Source: tagesschau

Draft budget for 2024: Lindner plans for 445.7 billion euros

The draft budget for 2024 has been argued over for a long time, but now it is ready. The finance minister, Christian Lindner (FDP), wants to spend 445.7 billion euros, and the new debt is to be 16.6 billion euros. The Ministry of Finance wants to follow a strict budget course in the coming years. According to information from Der Spiegel and the dpa, there will be cuts in parental benefits, for example: in the future, only parents with an annual income of up to 150,000 euros would be entitled to it. Source: tagesschau

NEWS FROM BERLIN

Expropriation is possible; Expert Commission published

“It’s a day of hope,” says Carolin Blauth from the ‘Deutsche Wohnen & co Enteignen’ campaign, “We will not stop, until this city belongs to those who live in it”. On Wednesday, the final report was published by the expert commission on socialisation of the largest property owning companies in Berlin. The report came out in support of the 2021 referendum result, during which 60% of Berliners voted for expropriation. The pressure is now mounting on the Red-Black Berlin government to implement the demands of the referendum, and with the final report confirming that not only is expropriation legal, but practical. Source: süddeutsche

Rigaer Straße: the village square in danger

Tenants in Rigaer Straße want to save their flats from being sold off. The story of the many occupied houses in this area, first from occupied to permitted squat and then on to regular tenancies, is not yet over. The flats of the three houses at the Liebigstraße 14 complex as well as Rigaer Straße 95 and 96 are now up for sale. Before the street became part of a milieu protection area in 2021, the owner, a Hamburg company, had already divided up the houses with a view to sell. The housing community does not want to let this happen, having spoken to politicians and cooperatives in the hope of finding a buyer for the all the buildings and flats within. Source: nd-aktuell

Last Generation new direct actions

The “Last Generation” drew attention to itself last Monday with a new form of protest. It involved obstructing car traffic, but this time there was no glue involved. Members of the movement obstructed the traffic at a total of four different locations in Berlin. Unlike usual, however, the climate protesters did not install a sit-in blockade or glue themselves down, but walked slowly in front of cars with a banner. Behind them, traffic was jamming, but went on flowing. The blockade actions were reported to the police around 8 am. All four actions had ended “peacefully and without disturbances”. Source: rbb

Lawsuits against Berlin over two-year wait for German citizenship

More and more people have made up their minds on resorting to lawsuits against the state of Berlin, trying to speed up their German citizenship processes. According to Tagespiegel, people in the German capital are currently waiting as long as two years to have them ready. And the pile of open cases just keeps growing – there are currently almost 30, 000 citizenship cases on file in the city. Lawsuits under such situations are possible when applications are not promptly processed. Berlin is struggling to meet the demand. A new central office to handle claims is planned to be opened next year. Source: exberliner

NEWS FROM GERMANY

Robert Sesselmann; the first AfD district administrator

The AfD candidate Robert Sesselmann has won the district council election in the Thuringian district of Sonneberg and assumes a top municipal office for the party for the first time in Germany. The 50-year-old received 52.8 per cent of the votes in the run-off election in the district in the south of Thuringia on Sunday and thus obtained the necessary absolute majority, the election administration announced on Sunday evening. The CDU candidate Jürgen Köpper. AfD national leader Tino Chrupalla cheered the result and wrote on a social media: “This was just the beginning,” Source: spiegel

Two racist attacks a day

Whether in the classroom or at work: Muslims end up fearing racist attacks. More precisely, 898 attacks (more than two a day), were recorded in the situation report on anti-Muslim racism for 2022, presented last Monday. The report is the responsibility of five civil society organisations under the leadership of CLAIM – Alliance against Islamophobia and Muslimophobia. Women in particular experience more insults and physical attacks. In addition, Muslims experience discrimination in educational institutions from kindergartens to universities – especially by teachers. The situation picture shows only a part of the situation. The organisations assume the number of unreported cases is higher. Source: taz

Pistorius wants to station 4,000 soldiers in Lithuania

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) has announced an additional of 4,000 Bundeswehr soldiers to be sent to NATO partner country Lithuania to strengthen the Organization´s eastern flank. “Germany is prepared to permanently station a robust brigade in Lithuania,” Pistorius said in Vilnius. He had agreed with his Lithuanian counterpart Arvydas Anusauskas that the reinforcement of the brigade would follow step by step “the growth of the infrastructure”. Pistorius stressed that the compatibility of the permanent deployment with NATO’s regional and operational plans, which were still being worked on, was of central importance. Source: tagesschau.

No staff for 1,719 clinics

In a report, Health Minister Lauterbach (SPD) defended the planned hospital reform and made it clear that time was pressing. He said that there was already a lack of staff such that it is not possible to keep all hospitals running. He had also commented: “We want to write the draft law over the summer, and the States should be involved. However, the matter is an urgent one: “The hospitals are slowly getting into great economic distress.” He has also stated that “we have 1,719 hospitals, for which we do not have the staff.” The hospital reform, according to Lauterback, is “at least ten years overdue”. Source: tagesschau